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Kilned malt

Technically, all or almost all malted brewing grains are also kilned. Kilning is the last stage of the malting process, in which the germinated malt is heated to stop the growth and render it shelf-stable. The kilning time and temperature can be varied to create either pale or darker, "high-kilned" malts.

Pale Malt is kilned at a relatively low temperature (approx. 100 - 125 deg. F) for a relatively long time (24 hours or more). This stops the germination process without imparting strong flavors to the barley.

Often these malts are referred to simply by the name of the grain used; for example, two-row malt usually refers to a low-kilned pale malt made with two-row barley, and wheat malt usually refers to a low-kilned pale malt made with wheat. However, depending on the brand of malt and the details of processing, pale malts may be known by many different names, such as:

If the malt is kilned at a higher temperature for a shorter time, it becomes one of the so-called "high-kilned malts." The higher heat means that these malts have experienced some enzyme breakdown and therefore have less diastatic power. However, it also introduces distinctive flavors to the finished beer.

Depending on the kilning time and temperature, high-kilned malts may be used as base malts or as a supplement to more disatatic pale malts. They must always be used in a mash.